Borders MSP Rachael Hamilton has celebrated the return of the Royal Highland Show after a 2-year hiatus caused by the Coronavirus Pandemic.
Ms Hamilton was pleased to be able to support the dozens of Borderers showing livestock and competing at the show, which took place between the 23rd and 26th of June.
During the show, she also engaged with numerous organisations at the heart of rural and agricultural affairs, discussing a wide range of topics from agri-innovation to river management.
A key theme of discussion at the show was food security, gene-editing, agroecology and future farm payments with organisations such as the Scottish Woodland Trust, NFUS, BASC, QMS, Support in Mind, Scottish Land and Estates and the James Hutton Institute.
This comes as the war in Ukraine has prevented the export of thousands of tonnes of grain, leading to global shortages.
Ms Hamilton joined them in calling for the Scottish Government to take action on this issue and enable farmers to increase production to contribute towards alleviating the problem.
Rachael Hamilton MSP said:
“It was fantastic to be back at the Royal Highland show. It is one of the highlights of the summer for many of us and was deeply missed throughout the pandemic.
“I was delighted to speak with so many people from around the country and listen to issues affecting people in Rural Scotland.
“Many of the groups I spoke to were keen to discuss food security. I was pleased to hear the Scottish Government raise this issue themselves at the show.
“I know we are facing great challenges right across the agricultural community as a result of the war in Ukraine, rising input costs and recovery from the pandemic.
“There are a number of ways the Scottish Government can support farmers and rural workers to weather these hardships, but it is disappointing that so far they have decided to bemoan a lack of devolved powers to do so.
“The Royal Highland show has given the agriculture sector a platform to call for action to be taken to support them through an especially difficult period and allow them to help address wider issues facing the world today.
“I believe we owe it to them to support them in doing so."
